Carp Fishing with a Difference
Uncut Fishing 2

Andy Commons aims to give carp anglers a video that is high on action and low on cost, and with a video retailing at £9.99 I guess you’d assume that you won’t be watching Big Studio quality . . . and you’d be right.

This particular presentation gives an insight into stalking big carp over the course of more than a day or two - and to do that, the first thing you need is a tent. Two nights under canvas in an angler’s “bivvie” (bivouac) means that a lot of the time is taken up with waiting for the bite alarm to sound, and when a water is unproductive over this period (as is the one shown here) an angler can become morose.
Despite his best efforts to put on a bright demeanour, I think Andy communicates some of this lethargy to the camera. Of course this inactivity is not shown on the video and what you do see is certainly enough to hold the attention of any angler who has ever fished for carp (or even those who wish to fish for carp).

The video opens with Andy at Clifton Marina, which, we’re told, is over 18 acres of water (and it certainly looks it) in an old worked out clay pit at Swinton, near Manchester.
Having set the scene with an interesting explanation of “Spodding” that is well illustrated on this vast lake, our host moves the action quickly south to show how he fared on a trip he made to Hendre Lakes, which, the video assures us, is near Cardiff.

Though the weather obviously wasn’t the best, our intrepid anglers were undeterred and were soon rewarded with some classic carp. This south Wales venue is said to be rich in double figure carp of good quality and the anglers’ joy at catching some of these big fish is clearly shown; as is the breath-holding moments of nervousness as the fish nears the landing net after minutes of struggle.

When I reviewed Andy’s first offering on video (this being the second in the series) I noted that the sound quality wasn’t great, and in that area things have improved only a little. Whereas in Video 1 there seemed to be numerous venues for which the day ticket rates were excellently recorded, in Video 2 there seems to be only two venues, and how to get to them and the cost to fish them is sadly lacking.
Andy does his best to show the viewer how to best prepare terminal tackle and hook lengths, but the close-up camera work would be better if it were “closer-up’.

However, there can be no doubting Andy’s (and his fellow featured anglers) concern for the health and well being of the fish they catch. This is amply illustrated as the anglers treat the banked fish with antiseptic fluids and creams and spend time ridding carp of lice and leeches, before returning the fish safely to the water.

As the action returns to the huge Clifton Marina it seems its reputation as a “difficult” venue is proving to be the case. Although the water is known to hold big fish of all species, Andy and his mates can’t seem to coax them from the deep.

Before the end of the video Andy does manage to catch a good double-figure common carp, greeted with his trade-mark “Jurassic Park!”

Although Andy lists the fish he has caught over the two-and-a-half days at Swinton, all are not shown in this video, and the only other I can remember is an unremarkable bream.

Compared to Video 1, Carp Fishing With a Difference (2) leaves something to be desired, indeed one short section shot at night featuring two anglers talking, is of such poor quality I think it should have been cut completely.

After the acclaim given to his initial venture in this medium, perhaps Andy was encouraged to rush Video 2 into production, but if and when Carp Fishing Video 3 is proposed I hope Andy tries to “plan” the finished article a little more.

Unpolished though it definitely is, it is certainly not unwatchable and as angling entertainment this video is still good value at under a tenner and, in the main, I enjoyed it. So much so, in fact, that I would ask Andy to think of me when Carp Fishing Video 3 hits the streets.

Regards to you all

David Wheat

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Many thanks to Dave for this review, you can learn more about Andys' adventures on www.uncutfishing.co.uk